


Anemos

by orphan_account



Category: Homestuck
Genre: First Meetings, M/M, The Winds - Freeform, The other Striders are mentioned, but its just a mention, even The Ugly Bitch One™
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-18
Updated: 2018-08-22
Packaged: 2019-06-29 01:50:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,801
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15719472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: The howling of the wind can be scary and annoying. Furious and intimidating and capable of feeding people up.But it is not what mattered to Karkat back then. What mattered was that Dave seemed terrified by the sound, and if there was something he could do to help this stranger that already had a special place in his heart he would.---akawhat are you, really? why were you there?





	1. Chapter 1

It was probably one of the most annoying things he’d ever experienced. 

At first he thought of it like a constant whistle, or rather, an attempt at whistling that seldom reached the right note. 

It wasn't even a constant, just an intermittent sound without a rhyme or sense. 

 

Karkat had never really imagined that the thing that annoyed him of the wind would ever be the sound of it. Well, he could've imagined it of this wind in particular. 

Maybe it was because all he had to do to avoid the rest of it was stay home, but he couldn't escape the sound. 

 

It was strong, like an asshole running down the streets somehow managing to slam every door every window on its way, to shake the distant church’s bells out without a tempo. 

At some point Karkat had thought that it could not possibly be any stronger, a scale in Pascal or Millibar would not be enough to measure it.

 

The following day it became much more intense, shaking you to your core as you dropped unable to stand. 

 

Of course that was the one day in which he actually had to leave his house to get groceries, because “wind’s too strong” wouldn't make his stomach quiet down. 

 

In these conditions his eyes had only two states of being: watering, because the wind got in them, drying them up and making them burn quite some . Or with hair in it. He could start considering a haircut, but honestly, the wind would just find another way to fuck with him, so why bother? 

 

He guessed, if he’d wanted to take that as an acceptable excuse to give he would’ve. But it was some other fuck’s fault so fuck if Karkat was about to use his impaired sight as a reason to apologize to the dumbass that had just pretty much slammed against him. 

 

It took him less than a heartbeat to be ready to destroy the stupid soul now trying to lift himself off the ground. He just needed to take a look at that astoundingly malformed dildo-shaped fuckface that despite what looked like perfect eyesight, warbled around in such a way that made an inebriated bar frequent look graceful. In front of him was a total ass scooper who couldn't even watch where the fuck he was going even when turning into an alley which everyfuckinggrub knows are known for their safety and excellent visibility. Of fucking course he was gonna bumble head first into tight fucking curves like there were a prize for the first person to plunge head first into a pile of fuming shit and he was a dung beetle craving the daily meal of feces like the piece of shit that he was. 

 

Also, he was fairly good looking, but an olive skin, big eyes and bleached curls would not spare him the verbal murder he was about to get. 

Maybe the look of uncensored fear that flashed in those eyes could, but it was brief, quickly pushed away by relief and then just… nothing. 

 

“Sorry dude, didn't see you there.” He did have the decency to apologize at least, but it didn't do much for Karkat's nerves. 

 

“Oh no, it’s fine. It so obviously was my fault wasn't it, you bumbling asshole? I forgot this sidewalk was all yours from the hours of every day to fuck off o clock! Excuse me for daring to take up even a fraction of your blessed alleyway!”

He then did something Karkat did not expect of someone meeting him for the first time: he responded without even skipping a beat, without even looking at Karkat like he were a literal five headed dragon for one second. 

 

“I literally just apologized, which doesn't happen often, you could've just-”

But his words got caught up in his mouth as his jaw clenched and eyes squeezed shut to the howling of an other gust of wind. He pressed himself closer to the wall, almost as if trying to hide from the spirit blowing through. 

He stayed like that, tense and almost going pale the whole time. Now, Karkat could’ve walked away, dropped the whole thing and do his grocery shopping in peace. But this guy had fucked with him, and Karkat Vantas was not a quitter. 

 

“So,” he began, once the howling had finally ceased for a bit. “You’re scared of the wind.”

 

“I’m not. Get out of my blessed alley dude have some religious sensibility.”

 

Karkat crossed his arms, watched as the asshole tried to go back to a calm and unbothered demeanor. His hand shook and his eyes were just barely shifty, he was faking and Karkat could tell already. 

 

“If you're scared of the wind why did you go out in a day when it’s literally trying to slam as many doors as possible? 

“I’m not scared of the wind! It’s just this one, just- Boreas.”

“My question still stands.”

 

“Where else am I supposed to go?”

  
  


Could that guy be homeless? Karkat was actually kind of feeling bad now, he had managed to make a fool of himself again and for the viewing of some poor asshole. Fucking great. 

 

He didn't really look homeless though, didn't really look like the kind of person that could be in any way uncomfortable, for some reason? 

But then the wind picked back up and he went tense all over for the second time, and the look of fear wasn't just a brief flash in his eyes this time, his whole being screamed it and it didn't stop until the wind did again. 

 

“Come on.” He gestured for the guy to follow him. Karkat always knew he was too much of a softie, as a troll he was supposed to be harsher, less inclined to instantly care for whoever spent more than one minute with him. But this would be the last time, this guy really seemed to need somebody. 

 

“What do you mean come on.”

“I mean stay right there where you are. What do you think come on means?! Just follow me, we’ll figure some way to distract you until the wind calms down a bit and then you can fuck off your merry way.”

“And I’m supposed to trust you because…?”

 

He didn't know if he was actually supposed to answer, the guy was following him either way, so that was a rhetorical question, right? He was going to answer either way. 

“Because you're a poor excuse for an asshole and you don't have anything better to do.”

“Damn I’m not even deserving of being an asshole in your book? That’s actually the gravest offense you've thrown my way this far.”

“Stick around, they’ll keep on coming. I have a feeling.”

The mew beast’s third hand vomit that was following him let out a puff of air. Maybe covering up a laugh? 

 

Karkat was definitely going to go grocery shopping. That was the reason why he’d gotten out, so he wasn't going to quit that. He might have just grabbed a few things outside of his list for his new burden, but that meant nothing. 

He decided he could do all that later, buy the actual food and toilet paper he needed once he’d rid himself of the guy’s company. Because he was not inviting a stranger back to his hive and he was not going to spend God knows how long just frolicking in a grocery shop. 

 

“My name is Karkat, by the way.”

“Oh, uh.. I’m.. uh. Dave. Yeah.” Karkat shot him a glance, but proceeded without questioning the hesitation. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so... am i gonna post once a day? hopefully.  
> stay updated yall

They ended up going to the mall. 

Karkat hated it: too many people, too much noise. But at least it was a closed space with enough shit to do to kill time and since it was a closed noisy space, Dave should have been just fine. 

 

They ended up window shopping, because Dave didn't have any money and Karkat wasn't interested in buying. 

Not once did Dave mention home, or a family. Not once did he mention the wind again. 

They just walked around, talked shit, traded insults. 

It turned out that the two fit well together. That the two could keep up with each other, that the two could actually have so much fun with the other. 

 

The first time he’d managed to make Dave laugh it was as if discovering a secret impossible to mortals. He seemed to glow, he seemed so much warmer, Karkat found himself drawn closer. And promptly looking away, with the feeling of satisfaction blooming within his chest. 

 

He had to admit, Talking to Dave was a bit weird: He had previously met people he went along with quite well, but it was different with Dave. 

Dave caught onto the way Karkat blew his anger up to be much worse than it actually  was almost instantly. He had quickly fallen in the rhythm of teasing Karkat and lavishing in his hyperbolic shit, and still. He stopped before actually getting him mad, every time, like he could see the invisible line that others either pirouetted over like it was nothing or never got even close to. 

 

And per his side Karkat just knew Dave was full of shit. He wanted to act cold and neutral and cool, but Karkat knew he was a softie when he spent a whole minute trying to get an unamused crow’s attention and trust. It did not work and Dave was clearly upset, but his pout was absolutely adorable for the moment it lasted. 

 

So they walked, trying to find the most hideous pieces of clothing possible, enjoying the warmth coming from the shop’s doors, inviting, enticing. At moments Karkat had thought that keeping the general building cold and heating up the singular shops was a strategy to lure more humans in, it worked for them, they liked heat and surely the idea of warmth would draw them in like bugs to a light. Social awkwardness would then push them to look through the racks until they maybe found something they were willing to buy. 

 

It didn't really work for trolls, they were built for the night, they could take some fucking cold. Usually. Just because Karkat ran hot though it didn't mean he was going to fall to the ploys of capitalism! His superior troll will would have no problems resisting that. 

 

Fortunately, just when he was considering one ugly but very warm sweater. he started realizing just how fucking packed the building was. 

He guessed he’d been too absorbed in the conversation with Dave to notice before, but it was in fact, getting ridiculous as more and more people poured in. 

 

It was impossible to move four steps without instantly having someone right in front of them, the chatter of people, previously convenient in that it kept the sound of wind out had now made it so the two boys couldn't understand each other without screaming. They had to get out and away from there, as simple as that. 

 

So they pushed and elbowed their way through the loud and sweaty crowd. Ignoring the nasty looks, and made their way out. 

The first two noticeable things hit them as soon as the mall’s hot air was behind their backs:

 

It would be dark soon, which wouldn't be anything worthy of notice, if not for the fact that Karkat had gone out around noon. 

 

And the wind was no longer blowing, no longer howling and slamming things with the anger of claiming an ancient belonging. 

At least not until they took just a few steps away from the building, and all bets were out. 

 

Like an open handed hit on the ocean, a deafening crash as wind stormed violent and parted the streets. Pieces of paper and leaves twirled nauseatingly and away from sight and all Dave could do was hold onto Karkat, let him lead the way to somewhere safe quick. 

  
  


He honestly had no idea what to do. He’d gotten himself stuck caring too much about someone he knew too little about in a situation in which he was powerless. 

 

How do you save someone from the wind? 

 

He took a hold of Dave’s arm to get him to leave his shirt, but did not let go as he lead the way.

Dragging Dave behind him, right against the wind, pulling him like a kite he was desperately trying to lift up, up, and higher still. 

 

He was fine as they walked around aimlessly inside, he smiled and shined brighter than the neon lights when he couldn't hear the wind. He was warm like a spot in the sun on a spring day, when he laughed.

Karkat could take his mind off of the wind again. 

 

“I still can't believe you're scared of the wind! It’s just air moving aren't you supposed to be too cool to be scared of shit like that?”

Dave’s fingers were warm in Karkat’s hold. The troll couldn't really tell if the wet feeling came from himself or the human, and he didn't know which idea he liked the least. 

 

“I told you it’s just this one ok? He’s… bad.”

“How did you call him? Borealis, like the meme?”

 

“Boreas. The wind of the north he’s-”

“Jegus, what kind of putrid fucking loser knows the names of the winds?”

“Oh, fuck you Karkat!”

 

He tried to still his feet on the ground now, as if he were actually about to fucking stop following the troll just because he had said for about the tenth time that Dave was a fucking nerd. 

Karkat wasn't having it though, they were almost there. He pulled Dave forwards and firmly placed a hand between his shoulder blades, pushing on. 

They were gonna get some hot drinks and Dave's antics would not stop them. 

  
  


There was always this peculiar atmosphere inside shops in the winter time, even if early in it. It was like entering a bubble as the threshold was crossed. 

It was as if the cold itself had a sound, not just the howling of the wind, but the heat being stolen from the air, your skin being covered in gooseflesh. It all made a specific sound that could just be summed up in cold and biting. But that all was dulled once they got in a closed space. 

 

The air became thicker, a thin layer of skin whispered the bitter difference of a heat not coming from the sun, not warming the flesh but chasing away the cold. 

It wasn't bad, just, not quite comfortable. Like knowing that something was displaced and exactly where it belonged at the same time. 

 

The smell was different too, and not just because the place smelled of ground coffee beans and marshmallows in hot cocoa, the shop smelled of that bubble, that not quite right not quite displaced warmth. 

 

They got their hot drinks: apple cider for Dave, a cinnamon and honey based drink for Karkat. The warmth the cups emitted was different again. More natural, not at all displaced. 

 

Karkat would never admit to it, but he liked placing his warm hand on his belly, it just felt so nice and comfortable even when he was doing it to himself. 

It was focused and yet not overwhelming, just pleasant enough to spread heat just below the surface where it touched, and the liquid spread like new roots through his core as he drank. 

 

The shop’s atmosphere really made him want to sleep, and the big chairs did not help. They were made of braided hay, the smell told of days under the summer sun, enveloping the guests like a hug as the chair creaked under the new weight. There were so many pillows everywhere around them, it just kept from being too many. 

 

The two kept on talking, letting the words naturally fall for they had finally found someone to match them in volume. Outside the window the small trees along the sidewalk shook like a boat in a storm, leaves were ripped away and thrown across the street, to their window, where the sound still came. Dulled, through that warm bubble. 

 

Too often Karkat would find himself leaning over the table just a bit too much, keeping from Dave of just too short. 

The human talked a lot with his hands, it was a nice change from the stiff and inexpressive behavior he showed at first. 

He looked more alive, more genuine. He emitted a kind of warmth completely different from either of the ones in that shop. 

 

It gave Karkat a sense of satisfaction, knowing he’d made Dave drop that facade so soon. 

 

Brushes of hands, bumps on the shoulders and arms, rubbing of legs as they shifted. Touching was almost an accident, surely an unwanted occurrence decided by Fate. 

It was nice, it was easy. 

  
  


It was incredible. 

  
  


Incredible, because even when holding his cup with both hands, in that bubble of not quite right, not quite displaced warmth, the main source of heat drawing Karkat in was Dave. 

Every touch felt like heat, but not quite. Not like his skin was on fire or like his nerves were trying to stand on attention. It was less carnal, actually. 

 

Touching Dave was warm, it was the warmth of hot air and the sun kissing one’s skin to infuse warmth. He honestly couldn't get enough and he realized when it was way too late. 

 

How was Dave so warm? He was wearing clothes that seemed too light, his skin promised sun kisses despite winter having more than creeped in already and Karkat couldn't help it, Dave’s hair made him think of the beach. How was he not freezing. 

He only seemed cold when he noticed the wind, the terrible wind. 

 

He had been hanging out with Dave for about 12 hours, slowly coming to the realization that he might have stumbled into someone with the potential of becoming one of his favorite people. 

They had been kicked out by the caffè owner as he tried to close up shop, and they had wandered through corners and archways away from the frigid wind, with each other as ready available sources of heat. 

 

They had been hanging out together for about 12 hours when it happened:

A person showed up, out of nowhere. He looked a lot like Dave, having the same color skin and just the same plump lips, but his were pulled in a thin line as he marched up to the two of them. 

 

Dave's easy smile quickly fell as the other approached. 

 

“Karkat, do you want to see me again?” He’d asked in a completely new tone, as if asking the most important question in existence during a time based game show. 

 

The other guy just spared Karkat a glance before focusing entirely on Dave, or as he called him: Zephyr. 

 

“Zephyr, we have to go.”

“Who’s that?” The troll asked, taking a protective step in front of Dave, not liking the way his behavior had quickly changed. 

 

“It’s alright, he’s my brother, uh… Dirk. Just answer my question.”

 

“You, Dave. have a brother named Dirk. Tell me, do you have a sister too? Is she named Dani?”

“We have no time. You’ve pissed him off good. We have to go. Now.”

 

At this point Dave got in front of Karkat, giving his back to his brother. Both his hands were on the troll’s shoulders, as he looked into his eyes with purpose. 

 

“Karkat, yes or no, do you want to see me again? Yes and you will, I swear that you will. No and I’ll be out of your life.”

 

“What do you mean? What’s happening?!”

“He’ll be here in no time.”

“It’ll explain, I swear!”

“Zephyr-”

“Please.”

“Yes.”

 

karkat only managed to see his smile for a moment before Dave kissed him.

Cupping his jaw and not even stealing the kiss, just taking it slowly. 

 

He was so awful, Karkat should’ve bitten his lip off for pulling such a stunt. How could he just take a kiss like he owned it? Like Karkat had told him it was his? 

Karkat could’ve pushed him away, but he felt like the sun and smelled of warm, and he was gone too soon. 

 

His hands slid down from Karkat’s face to his shoulders and neck and arms as he moved away, lingering on the kiss as much as possible as he stepped back, still holding Karkat’s hands as he gave up on chasing him and started opening his eyes. 

 

In front of him, Dave was taller. No, he was… floating? A delicate wind blew in his face, moving his hair as if underwater and lifting him off.

He promised he would return as he disappeared like watercolors, leaving a trace in the wind chasing the currents in the air until the shades of red and pink and green became too light to notice. 

Karkat was left where he was, for the moment , with wet lips open as his mind tried to figure any part of it out.


	3. Chapter 3

There is a particular sense of confusion caused by extremely unordinary events taking place in one’s life. 

The shock of the unexpected. 

 

Some are involved in an accident and talk of feeling as if the ground had vanished from beneath their feet. 

Others talk about mourning like one would a thunder strike with blue skies. 

 

The shock of the unexpected. 

Most of those things come across as impossibile, unimaginable, just because nobody thinks it could happen to them. 

 

This kind of confusion was nothing when compared to realizing the man one had fallen for way too quickly for it to be any good was apparently the wind. 

It took Karkat until the following day to sew together the events that had occurred. 

 

He came to the conclusion he must have gone insane. His solitude and need for emotional connections must have made him delusional, there was no other explanation. He couldn't be asked to believe that he’d been kissed, had kissed, by the literal wind. That was insane! He must have been going insane. 

 

So he pushed the thoughts down, pushed the memories away. He didn't go to the mall for weeks and didn't even look in the coffee shop’s direction. 

 

He could accept that he was going insane, it could fit just right with his shitty life, but he wasn't going to make himself long, dream of someone that never existed. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


However, he did do quite a lot of research on the name Zephyr. 

Apparently that was the name the ancient human greeks used for their God of the Western Wind, representing him as the most gentle of The Winds , bringing summer and warmth.

Well, that explained a lot of why Dave was just so… no. 

And the being was often represented with wings, though the interpretations varied. 

He might’ve seen something akin to that behind Dave’s-

He had to stop doing that! 

  
  
  


It was early December when he first thought Dave up. 

Until January he’d been debating his sanity, commiserating and kicking himself for being so desperate he ended up dreaming up his dream boyfriend and going as far as to imagine a reason why he couldn't be near anymore. 

 

By February he was pretty close to coming to peace with himself. Almost entirely forgotten about Dave, he could barely distinguish those 12 hours from a dream he’d once had, and why not chalk it up to that? A silly dream that felt so real he almost fooled himself. 

 

By February he was pretty close to coming to peace with himself. 

As spring neared and the days slowly grew longer, slowly got warmer. As jackets were discarded at home and the howling of Boreas became but a memory, a new Wind danced through the streets. 

 

This one was warmer, it smelled of new beginnings, nectar and dew and amber, it offered the perfect balance when the spots in the sun became too hot, just refreshing the bystander. 

 

Karkat knew this wind was Zephyr. 

He’d gotten confirmation of it when he cut through a park to get home quicker. To be more precise, a bark beast’s park. There weren't many trees, just an open space for the beasts to run freely and for their owners to easily see them as they lounged on the benches.

It was fairly frequented now that the cold wasn't so biting and annoying, but not crowded enough for the small sidewalk that Karkat used to be blocked by barkbeasts. 

 

The sound of the animals joyfully playing and barking as their owners casually chatted amongst each other felt incredibly distant. The rays of light coming in through the branches of rare trees covered the asphalt in dots, not really offering warmth as Karkat walked through. 

  
  


His only warning was the shifting of the lights on the ground, the soft sound of leaves rubbing together as a gentle breeze picked up. It started ruffling his hair, getting it in his eyes, making him realize just how badly he needed a haircut, and then it got stronger and stronger, but it didn't really matter. 

 

There were arms locked around his waist, a body pressed to his back. 

 

“Hi Karkat,”

Dave’s voice carried his smile so well Karkat didn't even need to see him to picture it perfectly. 

The touch was gentle, somewhat intimate without being too much. Or maybe Karkat was seeing this from the perspective of a touch starved daydreaming dumbfuck for brains. Part of him wanted to lean into the touch, enjoy it. 

 

Enjoy the embrace of the Anemos.

 

He stepped away, knowing that earth was weird, but there was no way in hell stuff like that could possibly be real. 

“No.”

 

He was certain, if his mind was playing tricks on him, he was going to have to show that fucker who was boss.

 

“Okay, I guess too much?” He had started walking side by side with Karkat now, looking as if he was trying to push a casual appearance through the uncomfortable of being rejected. 

“I just really missed you and there’s only so much talking even Notus can take before he decides he's had enough of me squealing like a schoolgirl. Not that I was doing that, mind you. I mean, you’re cool and I missed you and all but- yeah.”

 

One step followed the other. The shadows became less and less present until they were walking under the weak sun as they made their way through the gate. 

It was always closed, because people didn't want their dogs to run out and in the streets when unleashed, but the one gate Karkat used was rarely used. He always had to slide the bar that kept it locked and it was always an effort, not only was it built in a way that didn't make for easy grabbing, after years under the sun and rain and wind it had become pretty much the hardest thing to open ever. 

 

Karkat actually had to hold onto the gate with one hand as he pushed with the other, actually hurting his palm during the process a little, and being thrown off his balance when it finally opened. Karkat hated that gate. 

 

He opened it just enough for himself to slide through, and as he closed it again behind himself, he couldn't help but be face to face with a now noticeably deflated familiar face

 

“I thought you said you wanted to see me again.”

Karkat tried to keep ignoring him, as unnatural and wrong as it felt, he couldn't go completely crazy yet. He tried to pull his hand back, but Dave kept him in place. 

“Karkat.”

He looked like a kicked baby barkbeast, his eyes quickly running to take everything about Karkat in, as if trying to figure out what had changed in those months they were apart. 

 

“That was before you literally disappeared with the wind!”

“I am the Wind-”

“Oh yeah, that's more believable, I must not be insane and have imagined the guy of my dreams then.”

 

His eyebrows raised, his whole face seemed to light up at hearing that. 

“I’m the guy of your dreams?”

Karkat rolled his eyes, tried to take his hand back, but Dave’s hold was too solid. 

 

“Okay, I’m sorry. Good news aside. What the fuck?”

“You literally popped out of nowhere and vanished with some wind-”

“So your first thought was that I don't exis-”

“What would’ve been a reasonable first thought, ZEPHYR?”

  
  


“Excuse me.”

  
  


The two were effectively shut up by the appearance of a fairy old lady, your typical human grandma, with a gentle smile with closed eyes and short curly hair. Your typical sweet human grandma but with three dogs that reached her hips and then some around her, and all of them looking at Dave. 

 

“I couldn't help but notice you two and young man, I hope it is not the case, but the sweet troll here does not seem too thrilled to be with you, so how about you let him go and play nice?”

She had been holding her hands in front of her, at her diaphragm’s height as she spoke, but lowered one to rest on a dog’s head as she spoke, as if to draw attention to them.

 

Not as if she were expecting for the dogs to not have been noticed yet, no. She looked as if she were making it clear that they were not only there for decoration. 


	4. Chapter 4

“It’s fine, madam.”

The granny finally directed her attention to Karkat, her smile becoming much sweeter and more motherly now.

“You don't have to worry, dear. I can walk you home if you need to.”

“Thank you.” He guessed. “We were just having a discussion, there's no need to worry. You are one kick-ass grandlusus however.”

“Ho ho ho, very well dear. Have a good day then.”

 

She only gave Dave one more look, not breaking eye contact as she called back her dogs, getting away with a series of “oh! Pardon me. I’m sorry, dear.” as she made her way through the dogs, who were absolutely going mad over her and needing to be bumped aside to let her through. 

 

Dave let go of Karkat’s hand, walked through the gate when the troll opened the door for him. The two only took a few steps down the street, not even enough to turn at the corner, and Dave was bent at the middle, laughing his heart out as Karkat turned scarlet. 

 

“I guess I was just too good to be true?” He even used a sing song voice, he was asking for Karkat to hit him and so he did, smacking the back of his hand to his arm as hard as he could. 

 

“Ow- wait let’s get that lady back, she got it all wrong you're the asshole here.”

“Stop it.”

“Come on, it's hilarious!”

“No it’s not! I was questioning my sanity for months because you pulled some magic trick out of your ass, then you come back after a whole season and what, you expect me to just prostrate to your will? Act as if we're long time acquaintances, of course because nothing else could happen in my miserable joke of an existence when you were gone for eighty days.”

“You counted?”

“No!”

 

This was a waste of time, accumulating embarrassment that he could have spared himself for the moment. He was still going to suffer through something this bad, why add this to the future humiliation surely waiting for him? 

 

He stomped away, leaving Dave in the middle of the street, wanting to forget his- everything, and the way he’d longed for it for way too long, considering the short time they'd spent together. 

 

“Okay, first of all,” Dave started speaking before trying to catch up to Karkat, probably because he knew it wouldn't take long. He took one step, but his foot did not touch the ground, a light breeze had picked up and was growing stronger, Dave was lifted. Higher, with the second step he took his foot was at the same height as Karkat’s waist and he was soaring yet higher. He turned in the air, to be a few steps ahead of Karkat, facing him as he gently landed, one hand behind his back, the other offering Karkat a bouquet. The flowers were probably brought to him by the wind.

“It’s not a magic trick.”

 

Karkat stepped around him, kept going, following the wind even as pink everlasting and oleander cream rained on him

“Besides, I don't expect you to be like ‘oh yeah, I’d put my whole life on standby, let's go make out in the corner.’ I just wanted to see you again. You said you wanted that too, right?”

They stopped as the light turned red at a crossroads. Karkat would’ve kept walking, but knowing his luck he would have probably been run over. 

 

“I promise I can stay longer this time.”

“Why were you even here in December?! Aren't you supposed to be a…”

He bit the inside of his cheek as hard as he could. He wasn't going to say that out loud. 

 

“Supposed to be a… say it, Karkat.”

“A spring wind,” He hissed with the promise of a petty come back in his tone. 

“Do you have any idea how boring it is to spend most of the year in a cave when I’m made to run around?”

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so. In this chapter ai name a cropload of flowers, but I would like to point out that i am aware of the existence of Anemones, aka the flowers of the wind.
> 
> It was a conscious choice to not name it. 
> 
> JK I had already written this and I remembered later and was like... well fuck.
> 
> have a nice one yall.

It made sense, somehow. Things were not supposed to make sense once they became myths or just plain unrealistic. 

 

But it made sense. The Wind had had enough of being locked in his home, so he snuck past Aeolus to stretch his legs, but his Brother had gotten mad, due to his territorial and violent nature. 

 

Zephyr knew he could get in trouble when he left, but had forgotten just how brutal his older brother could be, since the last time he’d pulled something like that.

 

But the southern wind had not.

Notus was the one that had picked his stupid brother up, to spare him an unpleasant encounter and the family some trouble. 

 

Zephyr had not planned to stay so long, not once he’d heard the first barbaric screams of his feral brother. 

But it had been so long since he’d last met a mortal like that one. 

 

“Don’t you dare blame it on me!”

“How could I not? I wouldn't have stayed for just any screaming fury.”

 

By that point they’d reached Karkat’s doorstep. He was very aware of the decision he had to make: he could invite Dave, or Zephyr, or The Western Wind or whichever other name he responded to inside, trust in his promise that he would stay longer this time, or get in and hope to never see him again. Considering how long it had taken him to give himself the illusion of getting over Dave after a few hours, every second more would be just a sentence to torture when he went away again, and he would. The certainty that Dave would go away again was the shadow behind every single one of his words.

 

Karkat never was a good liar. He knew, deep down that actually, he had no choice.

He already knew what he would do. 

 

 

For the first time in his life, summer was just like what the movies and poetry promised.

It was kisses and nectar, the smell of alstroemeria and carnations, it was laughing so much his eyes filled with tears the colour of azaleas. 

For the summer he thought of the wind as an embrace, of whispered words in bed as a storm. He spent his nights listening to the crickets outside his window with fingers interlocked, stroking idly at the back of Dave’s thumb. 

 

For the first time summer tasted like honey and rose water, like the salt of kissing skin with a thin layer of sweat over it, like the mint in their mouths just before a kiss, like the bitterness of an ending. 

 

As the smell of spoiled mango spread through the local market and a new wind creeped in, Karkat knew. Summer was ending, and Zephyr would take the dream back to his cave, back to his prison. 

 

“Do you want to see me again?”

He asked on the last night, with his forehead pressed to Karkat’s, their bodies intertwined to have as much intimacy as possible. 

The window was wide open, despite the rain coming down, despite the outsider’s wind swinging half heartedly between the water drops. 

It was nice, to cover themselves in a blanket, on top of a pile, be each other's heat source in the cold room. 

“Yes.”

 

 

 

 

“Do you want to see me again?”

That insistent question. It returned, as summer was forced away by gentle storms. Always asked with the same shyness, with the same gentleness. Whispered like a stolen kiss behind a wall of lavender glicine. Always asked, year after year, summer after summer, almost as if expecting the answer to change. As if The Wind were scared that the human would wake up, realize there must be some mistake. 

 

It didn't matter what was built, in a love of silences. It didn't matter that Karkat had bought a bed and slept in it with the window wide open as winter neared its end, because he couldn't wait to wake up to it being closed and to his Dave in bed with him. And it didn't matter how many times Dave had snuck out from under Aeolus’ nose to visit his love even in the heart of winter. 

 

Every year that question returned, with just a hint of fear, and every year, the answer remained unchanged. 

 

No wonder Karkat felt as if he’d been hit by a train when, for the first time in over a decade, the question changed. 

It was a non existing step on a stairway at night, an explosion in the silence of contemplation. 

 

“Just make a wish,” He’d told a God as he held a dandelion in front of his mouth. He had just wanted to prank him, make him open his mouth to blow on the flower and stuff it there, but it turned out that he didn't know about the belief that if one managed to blow away every tiny white part of the flower at once a wish would become true. 

 

So he had to explain it, explain why he thought a God might need it, until he just gave up, gave a simple and clear order. 

 

“I wish you’d say yes to my next question.”

He looked at him, confused, as the wind picked up, stronger than Zephyr ever did. 

Not only the flower Karkat was holding, but every dandelion in the camp was blown away, in one go. Pollen spiraled around them and up, as far as The Wind wanted them to go. Karkat only had the time to raise his head, watch as the wind ceased, but pollen still danced around, twirling and swifting and planing. 

 

The cicadas were singing their song, somewhere among the grass, now either green or yellow for all the white was attempting becoming a cloud. 

And as he met Dave’s eyes again he knew they had never left him. 

 

“Summer is almost over.”

“I know.”

“Karkat. Do you want to come with me?”

 

It was the wrong question. There was nothing more to be said, as far as Karkat could put together. 

Sixteen years together, among incredulous friends asking if they really trusted each other, not seeing one another for most of the year, among compliments for being the one long distance relationship that worked. 

 

Sixteen years of longing and the pain of separation, the joy of feeling the spring wind and watching the Aquileia flowers bloom. 

 

And for the first time the question had changed, it wasn't about wanting to see each other again, it was about not being separated once more. 

 

Dave had already spoken to Zeus, implored, swallowing his pride, time after time, day by day, until the Father took pity on him, accepted an agreement that Notus had curated, there would be no chance for it to fire back, if only Karkat fulfilled this one wish the God made upon a flower. 

 

Sixteen years, and the question had changed, but why should the answer? 

 

“I do.”

 

 

A new God was created that day. He was fierce and passionate. He was a storm exploding before Zeus could even reach for his lightning, he was a lover’s kiss stolen between giggles.

He was the only one that could keep pace with The Western Wind, the one flowers prayed to silently as they bloomed, letting the world know of just a part of the love that had made him fly, up in the sky

 

**Author's Note:**

> I would like to thank the Karkat Thirst Server for somehow having made me write more than I ever did.  
> This one was a Jam fic, but it was slightly edited. 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! How was that?   
> And hey,
> 
> if ya wanna scream at me, hit me up on discord @Your Knight Of Rage #0203 or on Dreamwidth @ your_knight_of_rage where I'm tryna work on my writing and telling yall all of the story behind well.... stories!
> 
> I hope you enjoyed that and if you wanted to leave a tiny little comment it would mean A LOT to me and hey
> 
>  
> 
> thanks!


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